MatasCastillo to chair Ramsey County board

The Ramsey County Board of Commissioners on Jan. 4 elected Trista MatasCastillo as chair of the board for the 2022 year. 
MatasCastillo represents District 3 made up of Falcon Heights and Payne/Phalen, North End/South Como Park, Frogtown and Hamline-Midway neighborhoods of St. Paul. She has represented the district since 2019. She has also served as Chair of Ramsey County’s Housing and Redevelopment Authority since 2020.
“I am honored by the trust our board has put in me to serve as Chair and look forward to working to deliver on our vision, values and priorities on behalf of our community,” said MatasCastillo per a release. “I extend my deepest and most heartfelt gratitude to Commissioner Toni Carter for her service as Chair throughout the past two years, leading our organization through a series of truly unprecedented challenges.”
MatasCastillo enlisted in the Navy at age 17 and served for 16 years. She served in three branches of the service as an enlisted person and as an officer the Navy-Marine Corps and the Army National Guard.
Most recently, MatasCastillo worked as a strategic partnership consultant for Minnesota Assistance Council for and previously worked for the Minnesota Humanities Center as a Veterans’ Voices program director.
Jim McDonough (District 6) was elected vice chair. 
McDonough was also elected to serve as chair of the Ramsey County Housing and Redevelopment Authority. Commissioner Rafael Ortega (District 5) was elected to continue serving as chair of the Ramsey County Regional Railroad Authority.
The seven-member board voted unanimously for each of the appointments.